TRX target recovery xcellence

[bowwinkles]

The past few weeks, I have watched the array of comments about the Kellyco Vulcan and now the New Whites TRX pin pointers. The reference has mostly related those new tools to the now old Garrett pointer. The main talk has largely dealt with the fact that Garrett has first class customer service. This is mentioned mainly because of the list of issues that has plagued the Garrett and the fact that the factory service has been quick to take care of those problems. Not much is mentioned about the need pay shipping back plus insurance which my experience has showed to be about $15 per trip to cover that charge.
There are two new players now in the ring and I will honestly say that both perform to my way of use, far better than my twice returned Garrett. Though not perfect, the Vulcan serves me much better than my Garrett ever did and is close to my Minelab performance which trails the Vulcan by a slight margin when it comes to sensing depth. These conclusions are made without any super tuning, just out of the box and turned on. Here comes Strike three which in this pin pointer game puts the Garrett back in the dug out for the remainder of the season and the new Whites at bat on home plate. The same talk about factory service that previously elevated the Garrett out front should now shift to the Whites factory service which locker room talk has them even better than the Garret service. Kellyco is also quick to solve (exchange) (replace) (refund) on their named items and they are very easy to reach.
The Whites and Vulcan went with me on a short hunt where I located the targets with my main detector then used the pin pointer to cover the same area. I would locate the in ground targets (never dug) and then see if these two pointers would see the target. My past weeks with the Vulcan have shown me that it is the most capable as far as depth (over the Minelab and Garrett) and I have been satisfied with that fact. The forum talks have the Whites performance as doing well but that comparison was mainly against the old Garrett’s ability as the reference. There are other pointers like the Pistol Probe that and others but they lack the proximity alert that is a blessing shared by these new products and may also fail to achieve the sensing depth. Out of the box and tuned to “chirp” only and no vibrate (which is a battery saver) this is how it performed against the Vulcan.
The first thing I noticed was the sensing is at the tip and not all along the barrel of the probe like the Garrett. This makes for much faster recovery. A plug dug with the target high on the sidewall could be thought to be at the bottom with the Garrett’s full length sensing. This is also one of the reasons why the Minelab and Kellyco pointers shined over the Garrett along with their superior depth sensing (no super tune) during my tests. I installed a protective cap from Home Depot and proceeded to get the feel of this device. The tip is somewhat smaller than other pointers and this does make it easier to probe into the plug if necessary. The targets I located with my main detector were probed for and determined to be in the 5 inch range. I then used the probes to test sensitivity. None of the pointers could see the 5 inch coins (which later was determined to be clad pennies). I slowly removed soil until the pointers began to see the target. The first indication was from the whites which started the chirp at about 4.25 inches then the Vulcan at 3.75 inches and followed by the Minelab which held out down to 3.5 inches. The Garrett did not get into play until 1.75 inches. I repeated this test several times but finding coin targets that fell into the 5 inch depth was hard so I had to use 6 plus inch targets and prob then remove soil to meet that range.
I am very happy with the whites at this point and the alert is loud enough for my old ears. As time allows I will do a little more but now the Vulcan is back up and the TRX is primary.

 

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[bowwinkles]

Yesterday, that was the case as I described and the pointer would shut down LED off also. Today was a 3.5 hour tot lot hunt and I was very busy doing the de-tune (ratcheting) thing and the pointer did not shut down once. In the tot lot chips the need for depth is minimum so the thumb got started on its way to carpel tunnel thumb syndrome. This feature works very well but as our machines get more complex, the need for adjustment becomes greater and that time spent fidgeting with those adjustments may become a bit overwhelming for some. For me I just adjust away with my new toy and enjoy the hunt. As time allows I will try to play with that auto turn off thing, provided I can keep my thumb off that button long enough.

 

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[McKinney_5900]

I have seen reported where some feel that the turn on time is to long. My main issue at this point is the automatic shut down after about 5 minutes. Sometimes if you are working a target area (pocket spill) you may take much longer than 5 minutes to make certain that you have cleared all the targets. My Whites will just give a little tone and shut down right in the middle of the search. My minelab will not do this if there is activity. This is a small issue but still aggravating to my way of hunting.

Just me maybe, but I've never made a practice to leave my handheld pinpointer(garretts) on for 5 minutes. Even in 6-8" holes, I'll likely power down several times once in the hole between the "ups and downs" on the knees to dig. The complaint that bothers me most so far with the TRX is the re ground balances after each power cycle. The Garretts is transparent with that and it's quick. I'll wait until I get to test one of my hunt buddies TRXs before shelling out the cash.

Sure, I've left it "on" beside the hole at times long enough to cause the Garretts to chirp due to its continious GBing, but that was a long time ago, so I adjusted and use the on-off button lots more. I doubt that I'd ever be bugged with the auto shutdown on either pointer.

 

[bowwinkles]

This morning I took the pointer and book and sat down on the bench and did several tests to see the lost pointer and auto shut down functions in action. Both these functions did work as designed, so my interpretation of that function was wrong. I am assuming that all the punching of buttons (ratcheting) was probably taken as a shutdown command. I did however notice that twice during yesterdays hunt that the vibrate had worked its way back on and had to be again re selected to audio only. This says that if you are doing the sensing adjustment care must be taken to not hold down the button to long. If you do then the pointer would want to advance into the vibrate/audio selection mode. Original batteries (AA) still holding at a little over 12 hours. A pin Pointer with a small learning curve, who would have thought?

 

[airscapes]

Glad everything is working as it should be. And yes, multi-function buttons can be a bit of a pain. Personally I would prefer 2 or 3 buttons/switches but since whites wanted to make this water proof as one of the initial design requirements, it would make sense to only have one button to deal with as each opening would be a potential failure point if water proofing.

 

[Keppy]

Yes that new Whites pointer is on my list for this summer...

 

[bowwinkles]

I got rained out so this mornings hunt was short. I left the TRX and Vulcan in the truck and took the Gpp to the field with me. That was a bit like playing pool with a rake handle. You can get the job done but the end results are less than positive. For the die hard gpp folks that need a replacement and want to try something different, try either the TRX, Vulcan or Pro find. Just take and hit the button and de tune about 50 to 75% which ever manufacture you choose and you will have the same performance that you have been use to without all the shim and flex problems along with the trips back to repair. Garrett had a very good two year run and now they will have to go back to their drawing board and play a little catch up.

 

[Normsel]

I been thinking about the new Whites pointer and i do have a Garrett Pro pointer. I have never had problems with my Pro Pointer and believe me i don't baby it. One thing that throws many guys off is the pro pointer will go nuts if your detector is too close to where you're using your pro pointer. Also the speaker will clog with dirt and be hard to hear especially if you wear headphones. I will probably buy the Whites just so I have an extra pointer for my grandson. We all have a tendency to rush out and buy a new product that is perceived to be better. My experience with any metal detecting company's product has been good. Each has advantages that range anywhere from price to performance.

 

[ak_1234]

There is a sensitivity control on the TRX. Here are the general settings for sensitivity - the default is 3. Intended to be about 3.5". Sensitivity 1 = Bullseye II depth (about 1"), sensitivity 2 = Garrett ProPointer depth (about 2"), sensitivity 4 = around 4-4.5" - and it is likely to false on this setting, but some areas may be able to use it. It's not in the manual obviously. But here is how to get there:
First option:
1) Go into config (press and hold the button through the power down beep until you get to the taDAH beep for config).
2) Release and repress the button. Hold the button for 5 seconds. The indicators will indicate your sensitivity setting. The first set of beeps will indicate your current sensitivity setting (you should hear 3 beeps for the default sensitivity being 3). The next set of beeps will be the next one (4 beeps for sens 4), the next will be the next one (wrap around to 1 beep for sens 1). Release the button at the sensitivity level you want to be at. Might help you out in the tot lots.

-OR-

If you find yourself wanting to change sensitivity more than once and you want it on the "main menu" without that 5 second delay, there is a test mode which all it does is move the "menus" around.
1) Go to config mode
2) Release the button and then press and release 3 times.
3) Wait for config exit - you should get a dadadaDAH jingle.
Now your menus are switched around unless you do a factory reset (more later)
4) Go to config mode
5) Keep holding the button down - the sensitivity is the first menu rather than the indicators. release the button when you get to the sensitivity you want.

In this mode, the first menu is sensitivity. 2nd menu (release button after config and press and hold) is the indicator adjust. 3rd menu (release button after config, press and release once and press and hold) is audio adjust. This adjusts the frequency of your audio - so if you hear a lower frequency better than the one that the pinpointer is set to, you can find one that might be better. It has a very limited range, so it's possible that there won't be any difference.

If you want to put it back to the menu system that it came with, you can do a factory reset. This will reset everything - except the audio frequency - back to how it came from the factory. Go to config, release and press the button 6 times.

 

[bowwinkles]

I know now why there is a lanyard loop, It will give me a place to hang my cheat sheet instructions card on how to operate this thing

 

[airscapes]

Um, AK1235 how did you find this info? Are you a whites employee?

 

[ak_1234]

I figure you only change the indicators only rarely, but you might have reason to change sensitivity depending on what you're after. So, I personally like having sensitivity on the "main menu" which is done by the test mode. Easy to remember to just press and hold till I get the sens I want :-). The other way was driving me crazy - 5 seconds was way too long for my tastes, so I put in the test mode. Oops. Forgot to take it out. Oh well.

 

[bowwinkles]

As the TRX came out of the box all I needed was to install the batteries and do the audio only selection. After that it was use as is and play the ratchet thing during the hunt. Just this made its function much better than what I ever experienced with the gpp. I will not be going into any of the other mentioned programs. There are many now who have their new Whites so I am going to wait for their video's and reports to see their findings. So far the noise on the street has mirrored my findings.

 

[olma]

Sounds simple enough Bowwinkles. Would you recommend the TRX for a newbie? I just bought an ACE 350 that came with a "free Accu-find." Took the Ace out once and got a vintage pop-top instead of a gold ring. Ace seems easy to use and works okay. The Accu-find is junk--no response unless you're touching the target--and I do mean touching. I'm guessing I paid what the Accu-find is worth. I want to minimize time spent on my knees trying to locate the target in the hole. Is the TRX a good choice, or is there something simpler for a newbie?

 

[bowwinkles]

Olma, Yes, I do believe it is the best unit to be produced so far. This is based on my way of hunting, my areas type of soil, and having on hand one each of the competition pointers to compare it to. My back up is the Vulcan then the minelab. The Gpp has its resting place way back down the line.

 

[BladeRunner2019]

Thanks for the review bowwinkles. I am having some issues with my GPP so I'm looking at getting another pp and I'll keep the GPP as my backup. I'm deciding between the Vulcan or the TRX.

 

[goodmore]

Garrett ProPointers are good when they work. Many of us out there have returned more than one. To me that is unacceptable. The TRX is by far the best I have used. And I have used quite a few. Whites has a clear winner in their TRX. Try one and find out.

 

[neworder]

+1 for the TRX. I am a newbie to the hobby and had the "Accu-Find" pinpointed that came with my detector which is pretty much junk and slightly better than nothing. After reading about several of the pin pointers and then watching this video I figured the TRX would be a good pin pointer for me.



It arrived a few days ago and took it out today and used it for a few hours and I am very happy with this pin pointer. I was able to quickly find about 40 targets with this pinpointed and about 25 of those where coins. About 90% of the targets I was able to pin point by placing the TRX on the ground with no digging since they where within 3 inches.

What sold me on the TRX is not only the larger area that it can detect but the fact that the signal stops when the tip is pushed past the target. This was very helpful to know that you pushed pass the target and allows you to aim the pinpointed like you would a flashlight.

I was thinking of maybe getting the Vulcan 360 at first but the end cap requiring a screw was a huge turnoff and the 4 second wait to start using it. The TRX is ready in about 1 second.

A pinpointed is a very useful tool to have but the TRX really speeds up the recovery time of a target for me. There were a few areas that I was able to find coins by only using the pin pointer and scanning across the grass. Amazing Unit.

 

[lostbaja]

Just got a TRX today and got to try it out for a few hours.

It is the bee's knees. That is all.

Top features that made it a winner for ME and how I use it:

1) You can set it to have an audio only alert, vibrate only alert, or both.
2) There is a dead spot about halfway down the probe. This means it detects from the end of the probe. It never made sense to me to have a pinpointer that "pinpointed" in all directions all down the probe. But, up at the end of the probe near the handle, you still have the 360 degree detection that most pointers have. Best of both worlds.
3) It has a "ground grab" or "ratchet" or "detune" (whichever you like to call it) feature. When you turn it on, it's ready to go and has a good detection range. BUT! When you get close to a target and it's beeping or vibrating a constant tone, you can tap the power button to detune it so the range is reduced. Also this is helpful if you are in a hole looking for your target and you get feedback from the soil or a tiny piece of trash. Just tap the power button and it's reset back to normal function.
4) The signal is a proximity style alert, meaning the closer you get to your target the faster the tone or vibration becomes. Yes, like the Garrett.
5) It's turn on and go. Hit the button, it beeps twice, and you're set.

That's what makes it the best out there IMO. Also it doesn't seem like a cobbled together instrument designed in a hurry. It may fall apart tomorrow, but it certainly doesn't seem like it will. I feel it is worth the asking price and I can't find a thing I don't like about it. White's hit a home run with this one as far as I'm concerned.